Langford: City hopes to lure Chinese company planning plant with 1,000 jobs

About 1,000 new jobs could come to Birmingham if the city can lure a manufacturing plant planned by a Chinese company, Mayor Larry Langford told a group of Jefferson County elected officials this morning.

Langford said he would make an announcement on the project in about a month. His comments came at a monthly meeting of area leaders hosted by State Sen. Jabo Waggoner. The plant, if it happens, will focus on stone finishing.

Ted vonCannon, president of Birmingham's Metropolitan Development Board, said it would be premature to discuss the project.

"We have yet to get to a final plan," he said. "We obviously have a lot of projects, and it would be premature to discuss this while doing our due diligence."

Langford also said he was working with a foundation to provide health care coverage to the 5,000 uninsured children in the Birmingham school system.

The mayor said he would present details of that plan next week to the City Council.